The Theory
by Haberdashing
Summary: Transcendence AU. A researcher goes to drastic measures to find out the truth about one subject of her research.


Josie looked back and forth between the summoning circle sketched in the thin, yellowed pages of the book she held and the one that she had drawn out on the concrete in front of her, making sure that all the details were correct. She knew, deep down, that it wouldn't really matter if she fudged a few symbols here and there. Summonings were less a matter of precision than of intent, the circle she was using wasn't ideal for binding in the first place, and besides, restraining a demon of his strength with mere chalk and candles was an exercise in futility. But it had to be perfect, if not for his sake, then for her own peace of mind.

She shouldn't be doing this in the first place, she knew. Anybody who found out about this would think she was mad- though, truth be told, some had already reached that conclusion. But there was nobody else to turn to that could grant her the information that she so longed for.

Josie checked again. The circle was, well, as good as it was going to get, anyway. The candles were lit, and their flames were strong, and the golden wax was holding up against the heat, with only a drop or two snaking its way down the tapered form and onto the floor below.

All that remained was the chant… and the sacrifice.

Josie gently set down the book that she had been consulting and picked up another, a thick tome with a dark cover, its title etched into the spine in thick golden lettering. Just before she began the chant, she set the book down in the center of the summoning circle, careful to avoid making contact with the flames or smudging the chalk.

The demon appeared in a puff of smoke almost immediately after she finished her call, his arrival making the candle flames flicker and fade. As the images she'd seen had indicated, his appearance, unlike the bizarre and alien forms that most demons took on, was almost human-looking. Almost. If you didn't look too closely at the black-and-yellow eyes, the clawed hands, the fang-filled smile, the pointed ears, the bat-like wings… all relatively small details on their own, but each one a sign that this innocuous, even weak, appearance hid a demon that was in truth anything but.

" W̠̣̱͇̪̻H̵̼̟O̱̪̼͍͚͙̮ ̖̩̼̭̱͕ͪ͆D̛̦̣̦̙͚̲̩A̶̮̻ͩͥR͕͍̭̹͖̹̒͆̋̅̚͞E̠̞̤̙͇̯ͭ̈̅S̑ͦ͒ͭ́̐͑ ̵͒̉ͧS̸̥̰̥͖̪̳U͕̦̺͌̍ͯ͆͆̆M̌ͮM̫͞O̥̐͡N̳̱͚̰̎ͥ́͒̌ͤ ̵͍̤Tͬ͌́ͥ̑̊̊͏̝̦̱͎H͖͙̣͕͓̱̭̓E̺̮̟͙̺̅ͧ̌ͩͧ̚ ̟͍́̑̍̉ͦM͖̔ͣ̔̾͟Iͯ͛̄ͯ͋͐ͭ̀Ģ̮̻̠̩̂̎̾̊̆HT̅̽̔ͤ͗̈̈́Y̫̦͙͔̣͖ͫ̿͊̐̔̽͆͝ ̼͕͐ͬ̿̀Ạ̬L̰̭̯͎̦ͮ̔̓ͦ̀̕ͅC̘̥̃ͧ̏̒̔͌͘O͙͊R̛͈̲̯̜̲͔̉ͯͨ̽̏̌͛ͅ ?"

The booming voice made Josie flinch, but it took only a moment for her to regain her composure and speak up. "I'm-"

Alcor waved his hand in the air. "Don't bother. Rhetorical question. I k̢n̕ơw ̡wh͟o ̨y͡ou a͘re, Josephine Verdun Gershwin- well, you prefer Josie, don't you?"

She shouldn't have been surprised. She'd read about such incidents, knew that Alcor often showed knowledge of names that his summoners had not given, such knowledge a mere trifle for one who knew practically everything. But having read about such things had not fully prepared her for encountering them first-hand.

"…yes, I do."

"Figured it'd be a history nut like you using that circle. I'm surprised you lot even have access to it after all this time- I haven't seen that one in centuries!"

Josie gave the demon a tight grin, trying to stop her voice from showing too much pride, too much hubris. "I did do my research, after all."

"I would expect no less. And-" The demon floated over to one of the candles, straddling the chalk circle as he did so- "Nice work on picking out those, too. University reimburse you for them? Before last Thursday, I suppose?"

The grin slid off her face. "Actually-"

"Ooh, and what do we have here?" Alcor picked up the book that she had left in the middle of the circle, flipping through the pages rapidly. "A signed copy of _Gravity Falls, A History_ \- and with annotated margins? I like the way you think! Seriously, there's no creativity in the sacrifices anymore. People need to think outside the box- or outside of the circle? Anyway, I'll check out that bad boy-" The demon snapped his fingers, and the book disappeared from his hands. "-later."

"I'm glad you-"

"But I digress. You summoned me here for a reason, I suppose, and that reason probably isn't just to hear me blather on. Ca͠re ̷t̸o s͞h̶are ?"

He knew why she was here. He had to know, with all that information bouncing around in his mind. He just wanted to hear her say it, then, in her own words, a starting point for their verbal negotiations.

"I want to know whether a theory of mine is right. And not just a yes or no answer, but an explanation to go along with it."

"Oh?" Alcor raised an eyebrow. "And what theory would that be?"

"The one from the paper I wrote about you."

"You've written several papers about me, child." The shock that shone through her face just made the demon grin. "Oh yes, I read all those journals. Always fascinating to see what bunk the mortals have come up with now."

"You know the one." Josie regretted the words, regretted her cold tone of voice, right after she finished, but Alcor didn't snap at her or show any signs that he was displeased by her show of frustration.

"Of course I do. You want to know if you lost your job for being ahead of the curve, a modern-day Cassandra figure, or if you were wrong the whole time, if you were never meant to be a researcher after all. It makes perfect sense."

"So." Josie stood up as straight as she could, though the demon's height still dwarfed her own. Maybe she should have worn high heels.

"Tell me. Are you- _were_ you- human?"

The demon grinned even more wildly, showing off his dual sets of fangs, before filling the room with a dark cackle.

" Ho̕w̧ ҉mưc͟h̨ ͠ar̵e y͏ơu wi̢lli͠n͝g̵ to of͏fe͡r͝?"


End file.
